| Title: | Defence on demand: mechanisms behind optimal defence patterns |
| Author(s): | Meldau S; Erb M; Baldwin IT; |
| Address: | "Department of Molecular Ecology, Max-Planck-Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany. smeldau@ice.mpg.de" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1095-8290 (Electronic) 0305-7364 (Print) 0305-7364 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "BACKGROUND: The optimal defence hypothesis (ODH) predicts that tissues that contribute most to a plant's fitness and have the highest probability of being attacked will be the parts best defended against biotic threats, including herbivores. In general, young sink tissues and reproductive structures show stronger induced defence responses after attack from pathogens and herbivores and contain higher basal levels of specialized defensive metabolites than other plant parts. However, the underlying physiological mechanisms responsible for these developmentally regulated defence patterns remain unknown. SCOPE: This review summarizes current knowledge about optimal defence patterns in above- and below-ground plant tissues, including information on basal and induced defence metabolite accumulation, defensive structures and their regulation by jasmonic acid (JA). Physiological regulations underlying developmental differences of tissues with contrasting defence patterns are highlighted, with a special focus on the role of classical plant growth hormones, including auxins, cytokinins, gibberellins and brassinosteroids, and their interactions with the JA pathway. By synthesizing recent findings about the dual roles of these growth hormones in plant development and defence responses, this review aims to provide a framework for new discoveries on the molecular basis of patterns predicted by the ODH. CONCLUSIONS: Almost four decades after its formulation, we are just beginning to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms responsible for the patterns of defence allocation predicted by the ODH. A requirement for future advances will be to understand how developmental and defence processes are integrated" |
| Keywords: | "Herbivory Plant Components, Aerial/genetics/immunology/metabolism Plant Development/*immunology Plant Diseases/*immunology Plant Growth Regulators/*metabolism *Plant Immunity Plants/genetics/*immunology/metabolism Signal Transduction/*genetics;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineMeldau, Stefan Erb, Matthias Baldwin, Ian T eng 293926/ERC_/European Research Council/International Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Review England 2012/10/02 Ann Bot. 2012 Dec; 110(8):1503-14. doi: 10.1093/aob/mcs212. Epub 2012 Sep 28" |
